All known PFAS sites in Michigan

That's been a truism when it comes to per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, or PFAS, contamination in Michigan and across the country.

In 2018, the Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes and Energy (EGLE, formerly the DEQ) began searching for the chemicals in all public water systems and schools on private well water. To date, test results from 2017 and 2018 show that some form of the chemicals have been found at some level in the municipal drinking water serving more than 2 million people around the state.

Below are municipal water systems with a Total PFAS detection number in parts-per-trillion (ppt). Total PFAS is the sum of all PFAS compounds in any given sample. The measure encompasses other PFAS compounds besides the well-known PFOS and PFOA.

The majority of results are below the Environmental Protection Agency lifetime health advisory level of 70-ppt for PFOA and PFOA exposure in drinking water. However, the adequacy of that threshold has been the focus of significant debate since the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR) published a draft report suggesting the EPA level is seven to 10 times too high.

As of Jan. 29, 2019, the collective number of people drinking from water systems on this list totals 2,038,600, according to the Michigan DEQ. That's about 20 percent of the state's population. Most detections are in finished drinking water, but some results are from samples taken of raw, untreated water. The figures are the highest test result from either state or local testing in 2017 or 2018.

In addition to municipal drinking water, the DEQ has been testing all schools, day cares and Head Start programs on well water. As of Jan. 29, 2019 the chemicals have been found in the water at 54 schools.

An MLive investigation shows that Michigan manufacturers are sending high concentrations of PFAS into municipal wastewater plants, none of which are able to filter out the persistent chemicals. The inflow is putting many plants in violation of state law. Since last year, 18 wastewater plants in Michigan have been found in violation of the state surface water quality standard of 12-ppt for the individual compound PFOS due to the industrial pollution passing through their system.

Wastewater testing is ongoing, but Michigan DEQ data shows reveals that a significant number of Michigan businesses, most of them auto suppliers, are using PFAS chemicals and sending them into the environment. The state is looking at discharges from the 93 plants in Michigan which take pre-treated industrial wastewater.

In addition to PFOS, the sum of all tested PFAS compounds in some wastewater discharges is very high. Below are all Michigan wastewater plants in violation of the 12-ppt standard as of December 2018, and the waterway receiving their discharge. The test results show the highest results since 2017.

Michigan's first known PFAS site is the former Wurtsmith Air Force Base in Oscoda. The DEQ found PFAS at the old nuclear B-52 base near the shore of Lake Huron in 2010. The discovery marked a new phase for a base with a long history of contamination. The soil and groundwater is contaminated by Total PFAS levels as high as 1.2 million-ppt. In 2012, the state issued a "do not eat" advisory for native fish in Clark's Marsh and the Au Sable River, which are both heavily impacted. In 2015, Michigan's first activated carbon pump-and-treat system was built at base fire training area. A second went online in mid-2018. In 2016, residents near the base were warned not to drink their tap water. In 2018, a "do not eat" advisory was issued for deer around the base. Old hydrant water testing and historical plume modeling indicates former base families were exposed to high PFAS levels in base tap water.

Like other military sites, PFAS-laden AFFF firefighting foam was used for crashes and training. Contamination is found at the Oscoda High School and neighborhoods where base teams used AFFF on wildfires and in mutual aid response. Plumes have crossed underneath the river and Van Etten Lake and are hitting Lake Huron. Michigan regulators are at odds with the U.S. Air Force about the adequacy of cleanup efforts at Wurtsmith and the ongoing dispute could go to court. Wurtsmith investigations have helped inform PFAS investigations at other Michigan sites. Locals re-stablished a Restoration Advisory Board in 2017 and the NOW (Need Our Water) community activist group was created following the discovery of toxic PFAS foam on the Van Etten Lake shoreline.